Saturday, October 23, 2010

ECHO Lake Aquarium


Located right on Lake Champlain in Burlington is the ECHO Lake Aquarium.  This aquarium is small on size, but for children it has plenty of entertainment value.  For each exhibit they make fun little games or activities for children to participate in.  For adults, you'll get to see various sea-life animals, but it definitely pales in comparison to some of the larger aquariums in the country.  We'd definitely recommend this place for anyone travelling with children, but if it's just adults, you'll probably find other stuff in the area you'll find more enjoyable.

Friday, October 22, 2010

Vermont Teddy Bear Company Factory Tour

I'm pretty sure most people in America have heard their commercials on the radio before and are aware of the Vermont Teddy Bear company.  However, until you actually go to their factory and see the bears that they make and how they make them, you can't truly appreciate the quality of these teddy bears.


When you first get to the factory, you can tell this was a company that specializes in fun.  Inside, there are tons of bears on display for sale in various outfits.  You also have the opportunity to have yours custom-made in any way you'd like.

For the tour, you get both a history of the company from its starting point on Church Street in Burlington as well as learn how the bears are made from beginning to end.  The bears are of such high quality that they guarantee them all for life.  They even gave us a tour of the bear "hospital" where they work to repair any bears that are sent in, free of charge.


This is a tour we'd recommend for people of all ages.  You'll finish it with a smile on your face, and probably a teddy bear to accompany you on the way home.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Factory Tour

The #1 tourist site in Vermont is well accepted to be the Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Factory Tour.  Given America's love of ice cream, this should come as no surprise, even though the location is about an hour from Burlington.


Once you enter, the first thing you'll notice is of course the ice cream shop, where you can get any of the currently made Ben & Jerry's flavors.  This line gets EXTREMELY long though, so be prepared to wait to get your ice cream fix.  Further inside, you'll find a gift shop, which has all the typical tourist items with the Ben & Jerry's logo, including an ice cream cup cozy to keep your hands warm as you eat.  You'll also find the booth here to purchase tickets for the tour of the factory.

Your first stop on the tour is to watch a short film loaded with puns on the history of Ben & Jerry's describing how they went from a small idea in Burlington to the international giant they are today.  After that, you'll enter a viewing area of the factory where you'll see how the ice cream is made.  If you go during a weekday, you'll see the factory at work.  However, if you go on a weekend, the machines will not be operating.  There will be videos though showing you how everything works and the tour guide gives a great explanation of the entire process.

Your final stop is the Flavoroom, where you'll be able to sample the most recently produced ice cream flavor.  Free ice cream?  How can you not love that?  For us, we got the "Milk & Cookies" flavor and it was delicious.



After the tour, if you walk to the back of the factory, you'll also find the Flavor Graveyard.  Here, a tombstone is present for each flavor that Ben & Jerry's has pulled from production.  There is a limerick on each tombstone, along with the ingredients of the ice cream and the dates that it was in production.  Quite an amusing way to end your visit.